CINCINNATI — FC Cincinnati's West End Stadium was aglow Thursday night as the new facility debuted a choreographed light show on the new stadium's fins.
It's lit 🔥 @WestEndStadium pic.twitter.com/RmCQd54TWp
— FC Cincinnati (@fccincinnati) March 19, 2021
The stadium's fins used a first-of-its-kind lighting technology: SACO v-stick video lighting. The switch flipped as the blue and orange lights filled Central Parkway and dozens watched team graphics fly across the fins for the very first time Thursday night.
There are more than 14,000 feet of v-sticks in the 287 facade fins. The lights will shine facing east to be respectful of neighbors.
Kevin Rogers, who worked on the stadium’s construction, watched the lighting debut with his two girls Thursday night.
“100% so much cooler than I could've ever imagined. I saw the renderings early on. This is just amazing,” he said.
The West End Stadium is nearly ready to welcome fans for FC Cincinnati's match on May 16, its first home game to be played outside Nippert Stadium. But the team won't be the first to take the pitch -- that honor will belong to youth players from the FCC Academy.
MORE: Look inside nearly-finished West End Stadium
The stadium will feature a vintage beer hall-style club, a 360-degree roof and 26,000 seats surrounding the pitch. It's all part of what FC Cincinnati President Jeff Berding hopes will bring prestige to the Queen City.
“Our ambition is to have the best soccer stadium in the U.S. and Canada. We want the world to see Cincinnati as the best,” Berding said.
“The rest of the world — they know soccer. They've never seen anything like what we're about to show you tonight," he said of the world-class light show Thursday." That speaks to the ambition of the club.”
For more information, schedule and ticket prices, click here.
